The Rebellion
by I Am The Bridge Jumping Friend
Summary: Katniss and Peeta won the Hunger Games. They should be safe, right? Wrong. The Capitol is far from being through with them. Because they sparked a rebellion. Takes place between THG and CF.
1. Chapter 1

**AUTHORS NOTE: This is my first story. I know the first chapter is really short. Hopefully they will get longer. It would be really nice if you reveiw.**

**DISCLAIMER: Sadly, I don't own the Hunger Games. It's not like someone thinks I do or anything. Everybody knows it belongs to Suzanne Collins.(lucky)**

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_Out of the corner of my eye, I see Peeta extend his hand. I look at him, unsure. "One more time? For the audience?" he says. His voice isn't angry. It's hollow, which is worse. Already the boy with the bread is slipping away from me. _

_I take his hand, holding on tightly, preparing for the cameras, and dreading the moment when I will finally have to let go._

I give Peeta's hand what I hope to be a reassuring squeeze, but his face just grows paler. I feel liking crying, running to my room like I did when I was little. But I can't. I won the Hunger Games. I won. And so did Peeta. I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that out of twenty-four kids, only Peeta and I are still alive. It still makes me furious that the Capitol makes children fight to the death against each other. Especially Rue, poor little Rue. I try my best not to think about because every time I do, I feel horrible inside.

I once more look up at Peeta. He is hurt and all because of me. I fight back a sob. I am losing him, the boy with the bread. I cannot live without him and already he is leaving me. Peeta always has been my support during the games. I may have kept him alive physically, but he is the one who kept me alive mentally through it all, which I believe is much more important. And how am I repaying him? By tearing him apart, one piece at a time.

Why, oh, why am I still alive? I do not deserve to be. I am one of the ruthless, cruelest people ever. Peeta is not though. He is pure good. How can someone so caring and nice have any feelings towards me? He loves me, and I am horrible for letting him believe I loved him back, which I still do, somehow. I do not know how I feel about Peeta. I'm too confused and tangled up inside to sort out my feelings now.

The train coming to stop is what takes me back to the cold, painful world of reality, though my thoughts are not much better. "Smile," Peeta says hollowly. "We have to make them believe this." There is so much pain behind these words, I feel like hitting myself. _My fault,_ I think, _all my fault._ Why did I lie to him? I know why I did, to keep both of us alive. But the games are over. Now what was I going to do? I have absolutely no idea.

The train doors click, signaling that they will be opening. The train once more pulls me out of my horrible thoughts. I put on a huge grin and give it my best shot.

The doors slide open and I think what a huge fool I am. Nobody is going to believe this! Not when I feel like I am being ripped up inside! How can I pretend to be happy when I am not?

But then I see something that makes me think twice about my last thought. I see the reason I even fought in the Hunger Games. The reason I didn't just give up and die, though it would have been easier. Prim! I let go of Peeta's hand, which I am holding on to very tightly, and run to her. Even though there is only twenty feet of distance between us, it feels like miles. But when I finally reach her, I know coming back is worth it, just to see her again. I hug Prim, not wanting her to leave me ever again. My mother follows quickly behind her. She kisses me and rubs my hair; all the while telling me how much she wanted me to come home.

I finally let go of Prim and see that Peeta is by his family, but only his father and brothers are happy to see him. The witch of a mother just nods to him, and looks smug to whoever passes by, which happens a lot since all of District 12 is here. She is acting that way since she is going to live in Victor's Village. The only good thing to her about her son's safe returning is the publicity. Figures.

Then I hear a voice behind me. "Good job, Catnip." The voice is hoarse almost beyond recognition, but that does not affect my judgment. I automatically know who the voice belongs to and immediately turn around and throw my arms around him.

"Gale, I missed you so much!" I say. Some people think something else should be said instead of just six words; but Gale knows I don't like all that extra junk people throw in just to express feelings. I am more of an "actions speak louder than words" kind of person.

Which reminds me of how mad the Capitol is at me right now and how my actions caused that, but I can't think of that. This is my night. No one is going to ruin it. The Capitol is not going to harm me, not yet at least.

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**Cliff-hanger, a really bad one though.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay first if anyone cares, I switched my Pen name to True Magick. I know, nobody cares. Alright I get it. **

**Next: please review, it doesn't take that long just to tell me what you think. It really makes my day. SO PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I don't own the Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins does. And that is probably for the better.**

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I finally pull away and know I am right. There is something different about Gale then last time I saw him. Different in a good way. Good, except for Peeta and all my emotions. Turns out my feelings are right. I might like Gale. I might like Peeta. I hate this. Why is love so hard to understand?

Haymitch Abernathy comes over to me. He is my mentor, well not anymore, but in the Hunger Games he was. He helped keep Peeta and me alive. Well, Haymitch comes over and whispers in my ear. "Okay, sweetheart, we still have to keep up the love-bird act. So go stand by Peeta and try to look like you're a happy couple. You have later to say your hellos and stuff." I know he is right. There is private meeting for reunions, much like when the tributes say goodbye when they are being ready to be shipped off to the games, or more like their deaths.

Anyway, I follow Haymitch's directions, which sound a lot more like a threat. I know he is trying to keep us alive, so when I reach Peeta, I give him a hug. Peeta pulls me in closer and kisses me. When we finally break away, Peeta smiles at the cameras and I put on a fake smile too. I look at Haymitch. He gives me a brief thumbs-up. I know the Capitol must be going crazy. They are all watching the screens, never taking their eyes off us. I grin inwardly to myself. I could pull this off, at least until the cameras leave.

Mayor Undersee then takes the microphone, his voice booming around District 12. "Congratulations Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, winners of the 74th Hunger Games. It is an honor to have not one, but two champions from District 12. We all admire your skills and hope you will be comfortable in Victor's Village… " I stop listening about here. I have heard the speech before. Every year the mayor of the winning district gives the same speech. I think it is mandatory, though the Capitol must count it as tradition like they do with the Hunger Games. Yeah, what lovely customs they have. Basically it is the same speech from the reaping. I really don't need to relive that. Especially now.

After a while, Mayor Undersee announces some important information. "Now to celebrate, the feast will begin." An appreciative roar comes from the crowd, particularly loud from the residents of the Seam. Hey, we barely have any food there. The mayor directs Peeta, our mentor, and me into a large room. The walls are a deep red and the floor is a nice polished mahogany. There is a table in the middle of the room that is made of glass outlined by wood that matches the floor. The table is covered with a white-laced linen tablecloth.

Fancy is the first word that comes to my mind, but replacing it quickly is the furious thought that the Capitol can afford this all. We all take a seat. The rest of District 12 is eating outside. _Lucky_, I think.

Cinna and Portia enter the room and take seats, Cinna next to me and Portia across from me, next to Peeta. Mayor Undersee and Haymitch have seats on the end of the table and Madge is sitting to the right of me, next to her father. Madge is the mayor's daughter and is one of the lucky ones. She doesn't need to fight for survival, doesn't even need tesserae. Even though we have completely different lives, we are friends, kind of.

The Avox serve the food and I am surprised to see the red-headed Avox girl. I give her a slight smile so no one would notice and she returns it. Maybe we could have been friends, if I would have helped her. But she thinks that I would have been an Avox, too. _I need to repay her, _I think. She deserves more than this life.

"Katniss!" Haymitch says my name severely as if I am a disobeying dog that needs to be punished. "Oh sorry, what did you say?" I ask.

"I asked you when you are moving into Victor's Village." Haymitch repeats. "Peeta's moving in tonight." I quickly respond, "Tomorrow, I want to spend some time at home first." It was the truth. I miss my bed and my old couch and everything about my house. But we aren't keeping the old things. Our completely new house comes with completely new furnishings.

The day moves slowly and I just keep urging it to move faster. Twice I caught Peeta staring at me but he turns away quickly when I meet his gaze. My heart aches.

Haymitch is having a blast, though, unlike me. He's getting drunker and drunker. I wonder if his heaven is filled with alcohol. He sure seems to love the stuff. I try some wine, but it makes me feel horrible. Though it does wash a little of the pain away.

Finally the day is over and night is just coming, time for the "meetings". I am put in the same room as before the Hunger Games. I have to ride up the elevator that smells foul. I sit on the couch and wait.

My first visitors are my mother and Prim. No words are spoken. I just sit there with Prim on my lap and my mother with her arm around me. We spend the whole time I am allowed like that. They get up when the Peacekeepers come, Prim giving me one last hug.

Madge comes in next and makes small talk with me. All my words feel forced and does little to comfort me. When she has to leave, she gives me a hug goodbye also. Is this the last time I am going to see them? Everyone seems to be acting that way.

Baker Mellark and his two eldest sons come in third, but the mother is nowhere in sight. "Thank you," the baker says. "for taking good care of Peeta."

"It was nothing," I lie. You will never guess what Baker Mellark does next. He gives me a hug and then leaves. What? Am I dying or something? I want to shout, but think better of it. Who knows, I could be dead from the Capitol in two days. Heck, I could be dead in two seconds.

That thought sends shivers down my spine. I could be dead soon. I shake my head to clear the thought. I sit there waiting for my next visitor. People come that who I would never have thought like Greasy Sae, a man Gale and I trade with a lot, and Gale's mother and three sibilings. But no Gale. I sit there all night waiting.

The red-headed Avox girl comes in and holds me while I cry and think about the games and all I have done wrong. She makes me sad and I want cry even more. She rubs my back and it feels like she is sending me comfort words.

The girl leaves and gives me one last hug. I cry harder. It turns out, as I find out later, that she is my last visitor.

Gale doesn't show. I want him here more than ever before. And he doesn't come. I keep hoping tears eventually run out. Otherwise, I don't know how I will ever be able to stop.

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**Nothing to add except please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for those who did review, okay I had like two people but still. Better than nothing, right? PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Disclaimer: It is making me sad to keep saying I don't own the Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins does.**

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Eventually the Peacekeepers allow me to go home. _Thank goodness, _I think. There is nothing more I want than to go crawl into my own bed. I miss it so much.

When I finally reach the door outside, I groan. It's raining. Not just a light sprinkle, but pouring. Lightning flashes through the sky. Thunder quickly follows behind as if it does not want to be forgotten. As if they both want me to feel worse.

I push through the heavy glass door. Wind hits me hard once I step outside. For a moment I think the Capitol is causing this. But if they are, I can't do anything about it. So may as well accept this as one the worse days of my existence.

I walk home, trudging through puddle after puddle. There are no cameras; no one wants to waste them in the rain, and besides it's night. Lights softly glow from inside houses. I pretend I can feel their heat radiating off me. But it does not get rid of the real feeling of being cold and wet.

I am in the nicer part of District 12, so I cannot like feel more of an outsider. As I walk past house after house, one of them catches my attention. I stop, looking inside the window. Peeta's house. I can see him standing in the house. He sees my expression and walks away from the window. I can't blame him.

Okay, now I feel the tears on my face and I realize how big of an idiot I look. I start to turn away when Peeta comes through the door holding a red blanket. I stare at him as if I'm completely dense. He beckons me to the porch and I am grateful for the protection from the rain.

Peeta wraps the blanket around me and sits down on the bench connected to the side of his house. I immediately do the same. We sit there not talking, no contact at all. I look down at the patterns in the wood of the floor, listening to the rain pound on the porch's roof.

Finally Peeta speaks up. "Why are you here?" he asks. I have been expecting this question and look up at him. A moment of silence passes between us. "I don't know," I respond truthfully, my voice barely more than a whisper.

Peeta looks disgusted. "Do you enjoy hurting me?" His voice is low, almost inaudible. What? I gape at him. How could he even say that? I close my mouth. _Don't pretend you don't why, _I tell myself. I take a deep breath and answer, "No, not at all, but do you think I planned for it all to end this way? Okay at first it was planned, but then I don't know," I pause trying to regain my point. "I did what it took to survive," I say in an even voice. "What was real or wasn't, I don't know. I just wanted us to survive. I'm sorry, okay?" I stand up abruptly and set the blanket on the bench.

"Thanks, Peeta," I say quietly, "for everything." I turn and walk away, not waiting for a response. I catch a glimpse of Peeta with a look of surprise on his face. It makes sense. I surprised myself with that outburst.

I continue my walk home thinking about what I said. What I actually said, I have no clue about, but I do know that it must have been something Peeta had not been expecting. I try hard not to think about it.

I kick the water in puddles. I am angry at Peeta. I know my anger is misdirected and all, but it is easier to be mad at someone you care about and know than someone you don't. What is wrong with me? I am usually very good at hiding my emotions but now I have no idea what I am doing. I sigh, trying to rid myself of anger. Why does seem like the world in trying to damn me to my own hell?

I sigh again and give my braid a good wring. Water trickles from it. I throw the hair back over my shoulder. A rebellion seventy-four years ago ruins my life now. I am annoyed with myself. I sound like a whining child. There were many lives ruined, not just mine. All of the horridness comes from and because of the Capitol. No surprise there.

I reach the Seam. The Seam is the poorer part of District 12, and where I live. I run home with some stumbling, just so the world can make things harder on me. I see my house in the distance and I run faster. But then I slide on the wet road. I fall on my hands and knees, which are both scraped up now. I curse silently in my mind. I pull myself up and slowly walk the rest of the way, limping because of my bloody knees.

I shouldn't have run. It takes me even longer to get home then if I would have walked. But I finally make it. I struggle with the wet doorknob. It opens after a bit and I wipe the blood off the handle with the sleeve of my shirt.

Prim, who is reading on the couch when I come in, quickly stands up. "Oh Katniss," Prim breathes. She takes me over to the tub of water she had drawn for me when I would come home. She helps me undress and get in the basin. The water is lukewarm. The knots in my back and shoulders disappear. I sink into the water, letting it lick the top of my ears. I close my eyes and sit there while Prim scrubs me down. I was going to tell her I can clean myself, but I don't. I am too exhausted. I finally get out of the water and dress in my nightclothes.

Prim brushes my hair. I can tell she is enjoying this; she is humming the whole time. She leaves my hair down, still damp for the bath. She bandages my hands and knees. I want to tell her I don't need it, but once again I don't. Maybe she thinks she's repaying a debt to me because of the Hunger Games. Most likely it is because she is my sister and I love her and she loves me. We are closer than most sisters. Basically the reason is where we live and how we live.

Prim pulls down the covers on my bed and I crawl in. My lumpy mattress has never felt this good before. She tucks the blankets in around me. I feel my eyelids close. I am very tired today. Maybe everything will be better tomorrow. But the odds have not been in my favor as of late.

I am so close to sleep. Some voices manage to cut through, but they have an eerie dream-like quality to them so I don't know if they are real or not. But I do hear something. "What are we going to do?" The voice belongs to my mother. _What do you mean, _I think frantically, _what are you going to do about what? _Another voice comes through. This one belongs to Prim, but it is so calm and in control, I second guess myself. But the voice is Prim's. "What can we do? Nothing, that's what. We just hope Katniss and Peeta aren't the faces of the rebellion for much longer."

I try to get up, but I am too exhausted. Rebellion? Alarms go off in my head. _You have to do something!_ I scream at myself silently. Instead I just lay there trying to figure if that was real or a horrible dream.

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**Oh no What is Katniss going to do? Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Um... Well enjoy the fourth chapter.**

**Disclaimer:I don't own anything. yada yada yada**

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"_The faces of the rebellion," the words flow through my mind. I open my eyes. I blink, dazed __by the sun. _Where am I? _I think. I look around taking in my location. I rub my eyes. How? Unfortunately I know exactly where I am. I know it to well. The Hunger Games arena. Oh no._

_I bolt up on to my feet. My hands grope for my bow,but come up empty. I am defenseless. I quickly take in my environment for any signs of danger. It's quiet. I see the lake to my right and trees all around. I'm standing a couple yards from the cornucopia. The arena looks no different from when I left._

_For some reason I run to the cornucopia. There is blood on it, Peeta's blood from where the mutts bit him. The Capitol had sent mutations at us, trying to finish us off. They had sunk their teeth into Peeta's leg, almost killing him._

_I run into the woods. I finally find what I am looking for. Right in front of me is the first fire Rue had lit when I had blown up the careers' supplies. I keep running waiting to pass it, the next location, I find it. Flowers littered the ground. A cut net lay tangled on the dirt._

_I feel tears come to my eyes, but I don't cry. I know this place well. This is where Rue had died. Small tiny Rue had taken her final breath here. I was here with her. But I am still alive. I can't help but think that Rue was the one who deserved to be alive. She hadn't killed anyone. That had been a mistake, though. She had fled instead of fighting. That decision came back to haunt her. _

_I didn't know this for sure, but I am almost positive Rue did not die giving up. I could picture her in my mind spitting insults at the boy from District 1. Rue, she was a survivor._

_I hear howling suddenly. My eyes dart around looking for the owner of the howls. Then I see it. A mutt is running full speed toward me. I have no time to react. The next thing I know is that the mutation of Rue is on top of me, growling viciously, and then everything goes black._

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

I bolt up straight in my bed. I am sweating. I try to wipe it off with my sleeve. It takes my minute to get my bearings. I am at home, in my bed, not in the arena. How am not at the arena I don't know. The dream had felt so intense, so real. And Rue. I am hit by a rush of sadness, but I push away the feeling until I can deal with it some other time.

I look at my mother and Prim still sleeping. I sigh at the wave of contentment I get when I see them. Without thinking, I get up and dress myself in my usual hunting clothes. As I lace up my boots, I pause, realizing that I don't need to hunt anymore. _Who cares,_ I think to myself, and I finish lacing up the shoes.

I head out the door, being careful not to wake anyone. I walk down the street to the meadow. The sky is its normal gray colour and the air is humid from yesterday's rain.

No one is awake yet, it's too early. District 12 gets yesterday as well as part of today off. But when the sun is directly above, everyone has to go back to work.

I walk by house after house. Finally I reach the meadow. I listen to the fence. It is humming but I can tell it's shutting off. I wait for a few minutes until the humming dies down.

Eventually it does stop, and I lower myself to the ground in the safety of a couple of bushes. I look around to make sure no one is watching as I slide on my stomach under the fence. Once I am under and on the other side I look around once more. No one sees me, but I do see some who are finally coming out of their houses. I grab my bow and arrows, and bolt into to the woods.

The woods are familiar to me and had never been so welcoming. Earlier in my life, I had always been somewhat jealous of the other districts. They have it easy, well at least most of them do. But now, I am realizing that I always have loved District 12. It has been my home for sixteen years and maybe for the rest of my life. But life never goes according to plan.

I pull out my bow and arrows thoughtfully. I wonder if they still work. I shoot a bow perfect into the spot I was aiming at on the tree. I allow myself a cocky grin. It's one of the few things which I am completely sure of myself. I know I am being arrogant, but happiness is becoming harder to find. So I take it as I go with no regrets.

Without really meaning to I stumble upon me and Gale's meeting place. It is a rocky ledge that hangs over a valley. I sit down with my feet hanging over the edge, eating a berry from the bush next to it. I look at the hills that Gale and I had climbed so many times with longing. I can't help but wish that the Hunger Games had never happened, that my life will suddenly go back to normal and I will be here in the forest not because I want to, but because I need to.

_Dreams don't come true,_ I remind myself. No point wasting time hoping if nothing comes from it. I turn my attention back to the endless hills. They were a deep shade of blue-green. I give myself a small smile.

He comes so quietly, I don't even hear him. "Sure is beautiful," Gale says. I look up at him and give him a small nod. Gale sits next to me looking out at the distance. My stomach lurches. _Why does this have to happen to me? _I think miserably. Why did I have to have feelings towards both Gale and Peeta?

This makes me think about my about how difficult my life is and how I have a feeling that it is only going to get worse.

"We could do it, you know," I say quietly.

"What?" Gale asks.

"Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it," I say repeating his exact words from before I left.

Gale is quiet for moment. Then gives me a slow smile and shakes his head, laughing quietly. I give him a questioning look.

Then he looks up at me, grinning. "I might just have to take you up on that offer."

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**Please send me any ideas you guys have, I am having writer's block. OH NO! It would really help. :-) Please and thank you.**

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	5. Chapter 5

**This chapter was hard to write. Okay it only took me one day but still. So enjoy.**

**I have got a total of 2 reviews. Yeah!!!**

**Diclaimer: I don't own anything. Suzanne Collins does. Yeah for her!!!!! :-)**

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At first I cannot believe I even said that, but what about Gale's response? Run away! He would be willing to leave his family behind to go live in the woods. I easily could, I mean it would be hard to leave Prim, but my life would be easier this way. It would be safer for her.

_What about Gale's family? _My mind silently screams. They needed him to survive. This had been one of the stupidest ideas I ever had. And I had decided to tell him. Ask him if he wants to come along. I should not have done that. But if I had a choice I would want Gale to come along. I should have kept my mouth shut. It is too late, though. No backing out now.

When I finally speak, my voice is nothing but a hoarse whisper, "What about your family?" I speak my thoughts, my tone of voice completely different, though.

He shrugs. "It would be hard to leave them," he says. "But I've taught Nuovo how to hunt while you were gone and Gemello is perfectly capable of gathering." Nuovo and Gemello are Gale's thirteen year old twin brother and sister.

We sit there quietly. I bite my bottom lip, thinking hard. _Do I really want to do this? _I think. Yes I do, there is no other option, or is there? Who knows if there is another option? What there is right now and the future can be a mystery, but that should not affect my thoughts about what is here in the present. I feel like such a philosopher. A really bad one, though.

Gale finally breaks the silence. "When are we leaving?" he asks. My response is very well thought out and brilliant. "Um…I have… I really haven't planned it out this far," I answer stupidly. I am nervous about him being frustrated at my lack of plans about the whole situation. Hey, it's not my fault that I had just thought of the idea now. Okay it is somewhat. I should have planned this first. But the urge of leaving is so tempting, I couldn't resist.

Surprisingly Gale isn't frustrated or mad at all. He just looks thoughtful. "Well then, we have a lot of planning ahead, don't we?" He grins at me and I grin back. The thing about Gale is that he realizes I didn't think this through. He knows me better than anyone, which is somewhat of a good thing, but it also means I can't lie to him. That doesn't always work in my favor.

"So when do you think we should leave?" I ask him. He has somewhat of an idea, "I think we should leave in a couple days, just enough time for the cameras to go back to the rash, vindictive Capitol." He leans up against a tree. I know Gale hates the Capitol as much as I do, maybe more.

The Capitol is horrible, I hate them as much as possible, which turns out is a lot. They have destroyed peoples' lives so many times. Just look at the tributes, the ones who won and those who didn't win, the tributes' friends and family of those who did lose, and the Avox who had their lives ruined. I just wish I could get back at the Capitol. I think about the poor Red-Headed Avox girl and how her life was shattered to pieces. Then it hits me.

"Gale," I say slowly. He looks at me. I continue, thinking through what I am about to say. "How would you like to do something that the Capitol would not like, something small, nothing big…yet."

His eyes glitter with anticipation. "What are you thinking?" he says mischievously. He reminds me of child, when adventure calls, he answers.

"I am thinking about kidnapping," I say slyly. Gale looks at me with confusion, but not disappointment. "Kidnapping?" he questions. I nod. He bites the inside of his cheek thoughtfully. "Kidnapping what exactly?" Gale asks.

"An Avox," I say smirking. Gale looks at me with disbelief. "So this is climatic reveal," he says, "an Avox." He rubs his chin, pretending that he is debating on the matter. I grin, already knowing his answer.

"Alright," Gale says. "I'm in. But one question first. How in the world did you come up with this idea?"

"Long story," I respond.

Time passes. Gale and I sit there deciding on when and how to do this master plan of mine. "I think we have to do this soon, before the Capitol people leave." I say. Gale thinks this over. "That's probably the best idea," he says. "How about tonight?"

"Wow," I say. "Someone wants to leave the district." He grins. "I'll take that as a yes then," he says.

"So how are we going to get near the Avox?" I ask. "I mean we can't just waltz right in there, grab one, and leave." I can imagine Gale doing exactly that and leaving with a 'Oh yes she won't be back in time for dinner. That is the whole point of kidnapping'.

"The Avox comes out every night to dump out leftover food in the trash," answers Gale. "We can snatch one then."

"Maybe we could signal her to come over," I say. Gale chuckles, "More and more I'm getting the feeling that this is less of stealing and more like freeing the Avox."

I smile. "Not _the _Avox," I say pretending to act haughtily. "_An_ Avox."

"How do plan to signal this _one_ Avox?" Gale asks on the verge of laughing, so am I.

I imitate a bird. "Cacaa Cacaa!" I screech. Gale and I are both laughing hard. The whole situation is ridiculous. Two teenagers are trying to get back at the Capitol. _Yeah, this is going to work well, _I think sarcastically. The Capitol won the rebellion seventy-four years ago; and now look at where we are now. No shame trying though.

We finally stop laughing at how dense we're being. Gale looks up at the sun and I do to. It's high in the sky. "Oh no," Gale says, "I have to hunt."

"I will too," I say. Gale looks at me like I just sprouted wings. "Why would you?" he asks. "You don't need to anymore."

"I can still help you," I say defensively. Gale shakes his head, "Too bad," he says.

"Think about it," I say persuasively. "Your family could actually become full. It would be great for them." Gale thinks the offer over and finally nods, his eyes closed. I smile at how well I played my hand.

We spend the most of the day hunting and have quite a load. We take some down to the market to trade. The rest we haul to Gale's house. We're quiet until I pipe up.

"Why didn't you come see me yesterday?" I ask trying to make my voice sound curious instead of hurt.

Gale closes his eyes and sighs. "I didn't want to have anything to do with the Capitol." I have a feeling this is true, but not the entire reason.

I look up at him "Gale," I say stubbornly. I am not taking this as the only answer.

"Fine, Catnip. Sometimes you're just so hard to live with" he says. I smile inwardly to myself.

"Okay here's the real reason," he says. "I can't stand being near Peeta Mellark." I raise my eyebrows. He continues, "You almost died a hundred times in the games, and a lot of those times because of Peeta." He stops talking here and I don't push him. He seems angry, but his face is clear of emotions.

"Speak of the devil," Gale murmurs. I look up from my feet and see Peeta walking towards us. "Hey Katniss," Peeta says shyly. I notice Gale's jaw clamps shut.

Peeta continues, ignoring that. "Your family's looking for you. They need help moving."

"Okay, can you please tell them I'll be right there?" I ask. "I have to help Gale first." I indicate to the rabbits and the bag of greens in my hands. Peeta nods and walks off, looking back at me once. I look at him sadly.

Gale and I continue walking. Without meaning to, I bump into Gale. "Whoa, watch it Catnip. You don't want to fall," Gale says quietly, placing a hand with a bucket of berries on my back to straighten me.

I sigh and neither one of us says anything the entire way back to Gale's house

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"There," I say as I set down the final box into our new house. It was huge and grand. Everything was so new and so foreign. My mother is going to spend her time redecorating. Thank you.

Inside our house is myself, Prim, my mother, Haymitch and Gale.

"Come on," Prim pulls on my hand, "Let's go see our rooms!" I can't help feeling excited too. We race up the spiraling staircase and on to the third floor, Gale following. I don't know what half of these rooms are for and I doubt any of us will ever use them.

"You should know whose room is whose," Haymitch shouts up the stairs. "Thanks," I call back down.

The three of us enter the first room. It is obviously a guest room along with the next four rooms. We leave those rooms with little exploration.

Prim, Gale, and I walk into what I take to be Prim's room. The room is a light pink. The bedspread is white with lace. Prim's eyes light up when she sees it. "Oh," she gasps.

"Perfect for you," Gale leans down by her. He picks her up under her arms and I grab her feet. Prim is giggling as we softly toss her on to her bed. "This _is_ perfect," she sighs, her arms spread out on the blanket.

Gale and I leave her and look at the next room. This one I can tell is my mother's by the elegance of it.

We walk down the wood-floored hallway, our footsteps echoing. There is one room left at the end of the hall. I step into it with Gale trailing behind.

My room is amazing. The floors and the bed frame are both a dark wood and the walls painted a soft green. The desk and bedside table are both made out of the same dark wood as the floor. The bedspread is a quilt and on the walls are abstract paintings of what could easily said to be fire.

I notice a note lying on the quilt. I walk over to it and pick it up. It says

_Katniss,_

_We sure hope you enjoy your room._

_Don't forget that you will always be_

_part of the woods and_

_the Girl on Fire._

_Your friends,_

_Cinna and Portia_

_Thank you, _I think in my head.

"This room sure fits you nicely," Gale says, standing awkwardly in my room. All of the sudden I have an idea. "Hey Gale," I say. "Do you think your family would want to live here?" He looks confused, so I keep talking, "I mean, we have five extra rooms, so you and your family could move here with us," He doesn't answer, but answer for him. "Great, all settled. We can tell your family the good news tonight. Then we go get the Avox girl."

"Okay, then." he says. I hear my mother calling us for dinner. We run down stairs and Gale throws Prim over his shoulders like a sack. Gale's family is here and when I ask if they want to live here, they aren't sure. But I manage to convince them to, though.

Dinner is happy and cheerful and Haymitch is getting drunk and everyone is having a great time. Except Gale and I. We throw each other glances, knowing what the other is thinking. It is not living arrangements like everyone else. It is about tonight and how we are going to kidnap the Red-Headed Avox girl.

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**I know I am horrible at cliffhangers, but it is the thought that counts right? REVIEW PLEASE!!!!**


	6. Chapter 6

**This is my longest chapter yet, so Yea!!! Remeber reviewing could be a way of celebrating.**

**Disclaimer: Suzanne Collins owns the Hunger Games. As I said before.**

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Dinner seems endless, but somehow, at the same time, it feels like it is going by too quick. I think it maybe has to do with the fact that my stomach seems to have thousands upon thousands of butterflies fluttering around it. This idea is worse than asking Gale to run away with me. I mean run away with nothing romantic between. Oh what have I gotten myself into?

"Well, I best be getting home." Haymitch stands from his chair and stretches. "Do you need any help moving tonight?"

My mother answers Haymitch, "If you would be so kind." Haymitch shrugs his shoulders. "I've got nowhere to be," he says matter-of-factly.

So, as anyone could guess, we all start to move Gale's family into our house. It doesn't take that long, neither of our houses do. We don't own that much and besides we couldn't take our tattered old couch to this fancy new one. At least according to Effie we couldn't.

Once Gale pulls in the last box, we all dig into the boxes and start unpacking. I grab mine and my mother's boxes and run them up to our rooms. Prim follows me with her box.

"Isn't this great?" asks Prim. "You finally get something that you and mother deserve. You both work so hard for the family."

"You deserve this house as much as I do," I tell her. She looks shocked at what I said. "Are you kidding? What did I ever do to help out?" asks Prim sadly. She hangs her head.

I give her a blank expression. "You did more than you know," I say quietly. "You deserve this house more than I do." I quickly walk into my mother's room. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Prim staring after me, wondering if why I would say such a thing. But I know it's true.

My mother's room is very classy. The room is carpeted in beautiful red runner and a pale brown-yellow covers the walls. Sophisticated is the word that pops into my mind, sophisticated and elegant. I sit down on her bed with one leg tucked under me. I set the box down and carefully open, not wanting to damage what is inside the packed box.

I pull out a picture in a frame with silver vines twisting around it. In the picture are my mother and father on their wedding day. They looked so happy back then. Now my father is dead and my mother went through what could easily be said to be a serious case of depression. I set the frame on her bedside table as waves of sadness hit me.

The box contains other possessions such as her journal for herbal remedies, her favorite dresses, and additional items my mother has collected over the years. But nothing jumps out at me. I put the items in their right places. If my mother wants to change it, she can.

I set her empty box in the hallway, right outside her door. I pick up my box and head into my room. I stare at the floor as I walk, lost in thought. If it is not obvious, I'm extremely nervous about tonight. _What if you get caught? _My thoughts say. _What if you are killed?_

_Shut up! _I silently scream back. I am going on the fact that if I think about what I am about to do, the more likely something will gone wrong. So basically, in summary, Gale and I are just going to wing it.

I walk into my room and set the box down at my desk. I pull out a chair and sit down, curling my legs next to me. After a moment of staring at the box absentmindedly, I open it pulling out the contents. My mother had all the boxes already packed when I reached my old home. So I have no idea what is in it.

Right on top sits my hunting clothes. "Excellent," I breath, only being heard by myself. I take them out and hang them in my way to big walk in closet. I notice while I am in there, clothes have already been hung up, ones that I didn't recognize, though I do see my mother's blue dress that I wore on reaping day. I set the boots down under my hunting clothes and walk out of the closet. Fashion is not something that is important to me.

I dig into the box once more and this time I pull out my foraging bag. I throw it into the top drawer of my dresser.

Into to the box again, I go, and pull out a collection box that my father had made for me when I was four. My name was roughly carved with a chisel on top. The sides have pictures of birds, deer, grasses and other wildlife reminders.

I think, flashing back to a time when my father and I were together in the woods. He would point out every little thing like pebbles and twigs on the ground. I had once asked him why he did that and he smile at me. "Everything, no matter what it is, has the same life pulsing through it," he had said. "Nothing is more important than anything else. We are all of equal value." After that I looked at the forest in a different way.

I set the item on my desk and pull out the last thing out of the box. It is another wooden box identical in size and shape, but with a different name on top. My father's. I have never seen this box before in my life and how it ended up in package of things, I have no idea. But I feel for sure that it is meant for me. Curiosity overwhelms me and I struggle to open it, only to find out it needs a key.

I try a number of different methods to unlock it. None of them work. I am frustrated about that fact very much. I sit there scowling at the box, attempting not to look at it and get even more irritated with it. My eyes wander the room until they finally fall on my box. All of the sudden I have a strange urge to open my box. I take the box from my desk and pull it into my lap.

I unfasten the hinge, my box needs a key too, but I lost it. Unlatching the hinge works just as well. I look inside, though there is not much in there. A couple of broken arrowhead, some neat looking rocks, some pressed flowers, a medal I received when my father had died and a necklace with a key on the end that my mother had given me for my thirteenth birthday.

I sit there with the key in my hand when the idea hit me like l lightning. I shove my box aside and thrust the key into my father's box, perfect fit. I turn the key and there is a clicking sound. I lift the lid open and peer inside.

What is in it is remarkably like what is in my box, rocks and arrowheads. There are also some twigs and an engraved whistle. A couple of marbles roll at the bottom. A lose piece of paper sits next to whistle. I had expected more, I mean it was my father's. I remember him as very creative. I had predicted something more interesting or rebellious.

Sighing, I pull out the piece of paper and unfold it. I am not relying on much, but what I do see surprises me. It is a letter and it is addressed to me. My eyes quickly scan the note, looking for anything attention-grabbing.

_Katniss, _the letter read. _I extracted the promise out of your mother that if anything happened to me that you would get this box whenever your mother thought you were ready. Something wrong has happened in your life if your mother has given you this box. At the very bottom is a map. You need to do what you feel is right, but please try to the danger away from the rest of your family. I will always love you, love Father._

I sit there, staring at the note. I feel my eyes brim with tears. How did he know? How did he know my something wrong happened in my life? _He couldn't have, _I think. I lay the note back in its place and search the bottom for the map.

It is well hidden under the other pieces of my father's collection. I pull the map out and unfurl it. It isn't just any map. It is entire map of Panem. I have absolutely no idea how he got this. What I do know is that they are extremely rare. Well at least in the districts they are, don't want any more rebellions.

There is a map key on the back. He colored in places with yellow for where he has been. I am intrigued by is where he has been. My father has visited a couple different districts. I gape in shock at the map.

I notice, while I am staring in amazement, that there is a date in the corner. I quickly do the math in my head and figure that my father was seventeen. I can't believe that he did all this when he was seventeen. That is not much older than me, I'm sixteen.

I start to feel a little rebellious. Just enough to begin to anticipate tonight. I lock up the box with the map inside and leave my father's box next to my box.

I head down the hall seeing Nuovo and Gemello very happy about having separate rooms. I can tell whose rooms are whose, so I peak into Gale's room. Gale is lying on his bed with arms crossed behind his head, staring at the ceiling. He hears me come into the room. "Hi," he says not looking away from the ceiling. "Hi," I say using my extensive vocabulary. I walk over and sit on the edge of his bad. He scoots over to give me room. I look up at the ceiling too.

"Sure is different isn't it?" I ask quietly, breaking the silence. He nods, not saying anything. "I'm going downstairs to see if they need any more help," I say. "Want to come?"

"Better than laying here for the rest of the night," he says and I take that as a yes. We both get off the bed and walk downstairs. They are just finishing and by the looks of it Haymitch is already gone and Gale's six-year-old brother Lian is already asleep upstairs.

As soon as we reach the bottom of the stairs we're rushed back up the stairs by the mothers. "You two should be in bed," my mother says. Gale rolls his eyes and I grin. Mothers can be very worrisome especially when it is not that late. But we do as we are told. Don't want to cause an uprising of the kids.

Gale and I go our separate ways to our bedrooms. Before he leaves he whispers in my ear, "Don't worry," he says, "I'll come get you." I know he is talking about us kidnapping an Avox. _But it is not much of a kidnapping if she wants to leave, _I tell myself.

I reach my room and immediately dress in dark clothing. Then I curl up in my covers. They're very soft and comfortable. I tell myself that a small nap wouldn't be terrible, I am tired after all. When you're tired, you can be dangerous. I feel my eyelids grow heavy and they shut. I give way to oblivion.

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I awake to a sharp rap on my door. I sit up just as Gale opens the door. I can't make out his face, only the fact that he had the same idea to dress in dark clothing also. I push the quilt off and swing my legs off the side of my bed.

"Catnap for Catnip?" Gale asks. He is standing next to my bed with his arms crossed. Even though I can't see it, I feel sure there is smirk on his face. "Ready?"

"Yes and yes," I respond to his questions. I hop up from my bed and start to head toward the door. Gales catches my arm and swings me around.

"No Catnip," he sighs at me like I am not teachable. "What," I ask. "Are we not leaving yet? Because the door is down that way"

He grins at me and something dawns on me. We are leaving, but not through the door. My eyes land on my window.

"Are you telling me, we're climbing out of a three-story window?" I ask him disbelieving. He nods. I throw up my arms exasperated. "That's it. You have finally lost your mind." But I still climb out the window all the same.

When we reach the bottom, we take off running. Haymitch just happens to be outside when we run past. "What are you two doing?" he calls.

"Stealing an Avox," I respond as loud as I dare. He ponders this for a second. "Oh, okay," he says and then turns around and walks back into his house. Luckily he doesn't seem to care.

We keep running until we reach the buildings with the Avox. We sit in a bush waiting for the Avox to come out. Our hiding place is not too far from the trash bins.

After about what feels like an hour, three Avox walk outside to the trash bin and dump leftovers into it. I am overjoyed to see that the Red-Headed Avox girl is one of them.

_I have to get her attention, _I think and then I do something remarkably stupid. "Cacaa, Cacaa," I say just loud enough for the three to hear. "I thought you were kidding," Gale murmurs.

Well, the bird noises work and all three of the Avox turn their heads toward us. They see us, so a motion for the Red-Headed Avox girl to come over. She takes a step toward us then turns back to the other two. She puts a finger to her lips and the others pretend to zipper and lock theirs. I have feeling this is somewhat of an inside joke.

She walks over to us while the others go back inside. The girl motions for some explanation and I answer her. "We're busting you out," I say feeling like I am in an old movie. Her eyes show alarm, but she nods anyway.

"We have to get out of here before they come looking for you," Gales says quickly. She nods again and together, the three of us run off, as fast we can. The farther we are away, the better.

We reach the house and climb through the window, which is not easy. Fortunately nobody noticed our absence. I quickly pile blankets in my huge closet along with some pillows and tell the Avox girl she can sleep here.

"Are you okay with that?" I ask. She nods, beaming. By looks of her joy, I can tell she is used to sleeping on much, much worse. This was more than she could hope for.

"Great job tonight Catnip," Gale says when I come out of the closet and then he kisses me. Yes and I am guilty to admit that I kiss him back. Hey, I'm only human and Gale is really nice and good looking. Oh what am I doing? But I don't want to stop.

He pulls away and grins at me. "I would say I'm sorry, but I'm not," he says then leaves for his room. I stand there stunned, watching him go.

Then I turn around and climb into my bed. As I pull up my covers, I notice the Avox girl looking at me questioningly. She raises her eyebrows.

"What?" I snap. "I'm going to bed." She smiles and shakes her head. Then she disappears into the closet.

I lay there in my bed not sleeping, just thinking about Gale. I sigh and roll on to my side. I hate love triangles.

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**Ahh poor Katniss. I feel bad for her. She has a hard life. :(**

**I will try to make the next chapter grrrrreat. (Tony the Tiger)**

**Okay don't expect the next chapter soon. I'm really busy and I sprained my thumb. Somehow it hurts to type. I don't know why.**


	7. Chapter 7

**I finished the chapter!!! I hope all of you enjoy!**

**I'm going to be gone for a week and won't be able to post anything new (sorry)**

**But I will when I get back**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I did make up the Red-Headed Avox girl's name though. I had no idea what her real name was.**

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_I bend down by the fire Rue was supposed to start before she died. I feel my eyebrows furrow as I try to understand this picture. What is going on? I have already won the Hunger Games. I should not be in the arena. And why is the fire lit? I watch the lights dance and the flames lick the wood as dark smoke rises to the sky. I stare at it, lost in the beauty._

_I run my hand through my dark hair absentmindly, which for some reason isn't in my usual braid. I am wearing black pants with a dark green shirt. I stare at the clothing. It isn't mine, nor do I recognize it._

_Is this some sort of sign? I can't help think. _

_All of the sudden I hear rustling, but I cannot tell where it is coming from. I whip my head around, looking every direction for the noise's initiator. The crackling suddenly is coming from all points of forest. It drowns out any birds I had been listening to that were my warning signal. It's just the wind I tell myself. You are afraid for nothing._

_I squint as I look around, trying to see through the darkness. The dusk casts shadows on the forest making the woods look tens darker and ten times more ominous. Night is coming and I am not prepared._

_The rustling stops all at once. I know now that it was not the wind. Wind does not stop that quickly. The feeling of danger creeps inside of me, slowly, as if to torture me with it. I know now that I shouldn't stay here. But it is too late._

_The crunching restarts, but from one point only this time, a bush about twenty feet away. I quickly jump to my feet, looking around for a weapon of any kind. Why had I not a least gotten a tool or at least a defensive item._

_I am picturing a giant man running out of the bushes with a sword or bludgeon or something, when my eyes fall a large stick partially hanging out of the fire. I take a few steps over to it and pull it out of the fire. The end of the stick is blazing, flames overcoming the wood. It wouldn't be long until the rod was completely useless, but maybe I could overcome my adversary by then._

_I am just going into my defensive stance when a figure emerges from the bushes. At first it takes a moment to let the information I see sink in._

_Peeta! It was Peeta in the bush! I feel my face break into a stupid grin and I feel joyous that there is no threat at all. But my happiness quickly disintegrates._

_Peeta is not glad to see me. His face indicates fear and worry. He is breathing hard. He has scratches and I am instantly nervous. But not for me, for him._

"_Run!" he yells at me. "They're after you." Who's after me? I stare at him not comprehending his words. I stand there watching as he bends with his hand on his knees, catching his breath. As Peeta gasps, I wonder why I am not listening, why I am not heeding his warning. _

Am I stupid? _My head screams. I have to get out of there, but I don't move; I don't dare to. As it turns out, I don't end up moving until a bullet goes through Peeta._

_I jump at the gun sound, and Peeta tumbles over lifelessly. Hot tears streak down my face for I know Peeta is dead, no question about it. A man in an assassin uniform, which consists of black shirt and pants with a face covered in a black cloth somewhat like a ski mask, reveals himself, after being hidden in the bushes, and walks over to Peeta's dead body. He gives Peeta a rough kick and it takes all my will power not to shout _stop it, _at the top of my lungs._

_Once satisfied, the man turns his attention to me. The assassin is tall, over six feet, and I am definitely no match for him in a physical fight. Maybe I could outrun him in a race, but I will never know because then the man holds a gun up to me. I drop my stick out of fear and the man chuckles. And that is all I remember or will ever know. Because then the assassin pulls the trigger and the world goes black._

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I wake up with a start. I pant for a second, my forehead covered with sweat. Could you blame me? That was the scariest dream of my life and probably one of the most frightening ever.

The Red-Headed Avox girl is standing over me with two cups of tea. She hands me one and I inhale it, chamomile, lavender, and passionflower, the basis for calming teas. I take a drink. My mother used to make this tea all the time for when Prim and I had nightmares, but I have not used it since my father had died.

"Did Gale bring the tea?" I ask, then remembering last night. I take another sip of the tea trying to calm myself down about it. _It's okay, _I tell myself.

The Avox girl nods, answering my question. "I told him you were having nightmares," she says simply.

I sit there staring at my wall until it hits me. "You can talk!" I nearly yell those words as my face breaks into a grin. "How come you didn't before?" I ask wonderingly.

She holds up a small piece of cloth tied into a bag. She gives the bag a disapproving shake. "Inside here is a little chip," she says indicating to the bag. "It numbs our tongues and if we even try to talk or make one little sound accidently, we're are shocked. Hard. One Avox coughed and it ended up killing him. None of us ever had our tongues cut out. It's a lie."

"How did you get it off?" I inquire. I am enjoying this. It's giving me more reasons to hate the Capitol, not like I didn't have enough already. But the more the better.

"Gale and I pulled it off," the girl says. "It wasn't easy. Gale disabled the chip first and then we had to get it out." she pauses for a moment before continuing. "I must say talking feels strange."

I smile at her. If I hadn't been able to talk in long time, speaking might have been a little weird when I was not used to it, too.

I shuffle out of my bed, setting my tea on the nightstand. I start to make my bed and the Avox girl helps. I open my mouth to refuse, but decide not to. I need all the help I can get when it come to bed-making.

Moments of silence pass between us as we pull up the covers. I concentrate as best as I can, but I do a horrible job at that. Finally, I speak up. "I never did ask your name." I state.

"Would you like to know it?" she asks. I nod. "Gwendolyn," she finally answers. "But I'm fine with Gwen too." She looks tired, and I think about letting sleep on my bed, for a nap. Then I remember that I don't when Gale and I are leaving, but I am planning to take Gwen along. And right now would probably the best time to ask her.

"So," I say trying to make my voice sound casual, which I do a terrible job at. "Gale and I are leaving the district. I just wanted to know if you want to come along." I look up from my thumbs that I was twiddling and into the eyes of Gwendolyn. She is studying me, trying to figure out if I'm lying or telling the truth.

"Sure," she says. I raise my eyebrows in surprise. If you had asked me before on what I thought she would decide on, I couldn't even guess. I feel relief, but also anxiety too. Then again, my head is varied so much I probably could have got left and right switched around also. Scratch that last part, everyone should just ignore me. That works out great.

"When are we leaving?" Gwendolyn asks, interrupting my thoughts; which is for the better because my thoughts aren't doing much to help my confused state of mind.

"Um," I start. Look at Everdeen and her amazing vocabulary, (oh there go my thoughts again and this time from third person point of view). "Well, we have to go talk to Gale about."

She nods. "Then we better go see to it," Gwen says simply. I groan at the injustice of it all. Oh why does the thought of seeing Gale start to turn up those butterflies in my stomach from before? I did do anything to deserve it. It's not fair.

Gwen starts down the hall and I follow unwillingly in pursuit. We reach Gale's room and she gives a short quick rap on the closed door then opens the door. We are both in the room and with the door shut when Gale speaks up. "Come in," he says sarcastically. He is sitting at a desk in a corner of the room next to a window.

Well, being pathetic like I am, I become very nervous and want nothing more than to bolt out of the room. Gale, seeing my obvious discomfort, flashes me a smile. _Thanks Gale, _I think annoyed, _Couldn't have had made this easy for me? _

Gwendolyn indicates at me to start talking and I groan inwardly to myself. Can't they tell how I'm feeling right now? I feel like such child for being so embarrassed. _It's okay,_ I tell myself, _it is just Gale. _As it turns out, that pep talk doesn't help me much.

Finally, after many questioning looks, I finally get out, "Um, we were just wondering, um, when we are going to leave."_ Great job, Everdeen. Shut up, _I yell back in my head_. _

"I don't know," Gale says. "I was thinking today. I'm just getting ready right now." He points to the paper on the desk. It is a map, difficult to read and not as well drawn like my father's. "It would help if I had more time and experience and knowledge, but I don't, so we're stuck with this." Gale gives the paper a light slap and sighs.

"Wait," I say. "I might have a better one." I already thought the idea through and I think it is fate. I take off running to my room, too excited to stop and tell them about my idea. I know they are following because closely behind me because I hear footsteps.

I run into my room and over to my desk. I sit down on my chair, pulling my father's box into my lap. Gale and Gwendolyn walk into the room and stand next to me, looking over my shoulder. I pull the key out of my box and shove it into my father's lock. It clicks, and then the lid swings open. I dig through the box, trying to find what I am looking for. Gwen and Gale are shooting each other curious glances, as if wondering what the crazy girl is doing now. I reach the bottom of the box and I pull out the map. I unfold it, showing them what I meant.

"Wow," Gale says, his eyes lighting up. "How did you get this?" He is amazed and I smile. He is still the same Gale no matter what happened last night. That thought comforts me.

"It was my father's," I say. "He had it in his box of collections." I motion to the box.

"Well then," Gale says, "you have made this trip easier, Catnip. How about we leave today?"

I look at Gwen. "Works for me," she shrugs. They both turn to look at me and once again I feel awkward. "Sure," I mumble not really caring when we leave as long as we get to leave.

"Okay," Gale says, "how about we leave in two hours at nine' o'clock?" Gwen and I nod our agreement. "Great," he says, "pack what you need and try to go light. Katniss, bring your bow, we'll need it." I nod again. Gale continues, "Other than blankets, first aid kit and other necessities, we should be good." He leaves the room and Gwen enters her room/closet that she had slept in. I follow her.

"You can have anything you want in there," I tell her, talking about the clothes. Her eyes light up and I can tell that she couldn't have asked for anything better. I walk out of the closet and into my empty room. I sit back down on the desk chair, staring out the window as the sun is peeking above the horizon. It hurts my eyes to look at it, but I gaze at it anyway.

The sky is a fiery colour and the world looks like it is going to burst out in flames. I think back to the Hunger Games, when I was the girl on fire. Cinna had the idea of my entire costumes to be with the theme fire. Yeah, it was a great idea until the Capitol thought it was a splendid idea also. Then they used it against me. Now I want pay back.

I don't know if these are my true thoughts coming from the Katniss I know or some bloodthirsty monster hidden within me. I shudder at the notion. _That can't possibly be me_, I think to myself, _there is only the me that I know, nothing more, right? _

I have really no control over my mind anymore, so I try to ignore it as best as I can. I sigh to no one in particular and heave myself off the chair. I grab my foraging bag which works just as well for carrying items as anything else. I walk around the room deciding what to put in it.

Gwendolyn comes out of the closet. She switched her clothing from her Avox uniform to a green shirt and blue pants. She looks around the room awkwardly before leaving to help Gale.

I decide to look in the closet for starters. The Avox uniform is lying in pile in the corner, wrinkled. I pull on my hunting clothes and shove another outfit into the bag. Little did I know that I had put a green shirt and tawny pants in the bag, along with a black jacket that was burned by fire.

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Two hours later we're ready to leave. Luckily, Gale's and my families are not morning people, so the three of us can easily sneak out. I leave the note from my father left me for my mother. Maybe she would understand.

We run past the houses and to the meadow. I get down on my hands and knees. Gwendolyn suddenly speaks up, making me stop where I was. "Katniss are you sure it's safe?" she asks. I pause and listen to the fence. There was no humming.

"I'm sure," I say and climb through the fence. I stand up, brushing dirt off me. I head to the tree and retrieve Gale's and my bows. By the time I return to the fence, Gwen and Gale are both through the fence. I hand one of the bows to Gale. He nods his thanks.

I realize then that Gwen has no weapons to defend herself. "Hold on," I mumble, digging through my bag. I finally find what I am looking for. I give Gwendolyn two of the knives in my pack. "Thank you," she says quietly.

It grows hushed between the three of us as we stand there. I look at both of them before saying anything.

"Are we really going to leave?" I ask. They both nod.

"It's for the best," Gale says, but I can see that he is trying to convince himself as well as us.

"May as well go and get the worst over with now," Gwen says. I can feel that she is right. The whole thing is like a bandage. If we get this part over with now, the rest of our lives should be smooth sailing, especially me. Because maybe this is how I am going to avoid the Capitol for the rest of my life.

I grip my arm tighter and tighter and give a little whimper of pain. I look at my arm, my grip shouldn't have hurt. On my arm is a little bump.

"What is that?" asks Gale. Gwen is looking at it with worry; she must know what it is. I know what it is. I remember when I got it, another reason to hate the Capitol.

Inside my arm is a tracking device the Capitol used to locate tributes during the Hunger Games when they were in the arena. I feel anger bubble inside me and immediately want the thing out of me.

"A tracking chip," I tell Gale as I pull out a knife from the pack. Gale's eyes widen. "Katniss, don't." he only uses my real name when the situation is serious, like now.

His words are too late; I am already driving the knife in my arm. It hurts so much and I have to fight back a cry. I work the knife into my arm. I pull upward, letting the device fall out of my arm and on to the ground. I stare at it. Gwendolyn was ready for what I did and had the first aid kit pulled out of her bag. She bandages up my heavily bleeding arm. I barely move.

"Are you insane Catnip?" Gale yells at me. I ignore him. I didn't want the Capitol to find us out here; I was not risking their lives along with mine.

My whole arm hurts, and I almost wish I didn't take it out. Almost, I am glad I did though.

"We should leave," I say and we begin to walk away, deeper and deeper into the forest. But then I hear a voice. One that could I recognize anywhere.

"Katniss?" It says. I spin around looking for where the voice it came from. Then I spot it. He was following us and now he caught up. Peeta.

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**Let me say right now that it was RoMaNTiCiLLuSioNS of the HeaRT's idea that Peeta would catch them when they would run away.**

**Thank you RoMaNTiCiLLuSioNS of the HeaRT!**

**Review everyone!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for the long time of waiting for the chapter. But here it is, just took me awhile. So Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Suzanne Collins does. (sings to a joyous melody)**

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Peeta! I can't believe I didn't see this coming! Of course my life could use more drama. I seem to be running out of it, lately.

Everything feels like it is moving in fast motion. I hear Gale groan and Gwendolyn gasp and my mind go, "dun Dun DUNNN!"

"Peeta," I stumble with words. "Wh-What are you doing here?" My eyes are wide and I can imagine my companions' are too. Peeta glances towards Gale and Gwen. I can tell by look on his face that he recognizes Gwen. Then he fixes his gaze back on me.

"Why is that important?" he asks. "I should be asking what _you_ aredoing. Your family is worried sick about you." At first I start to fret, but I can tell what he is doing. He's lying. My family isn't awake yet. Peeta is worried about me. Well, I don't need someone concerned. I think I've proven that I can survive on my own.

"If you must know," I start, "we're leaving District 12." I finish simply as if I was stating my own name. Peeta looks shocked. I prepare an argument in my mind against Peeta's reasons for me to stay. But it turns out I don't need it.

Peeta's face is calm and collected when he says, "I want to go with you." My mouth falls open with surprise.

Gale decides to speak up, which lucky for me because I don't think I could have. "We need to talk about that first," he growls.

"Fine," Peeta snaps. I could almost swear I saw the air crack with furious energy between the two.

Gale takes Gwendolyn's and my arms, and pulls us away from Peeta. "Absolutely not!" he roars once we're a good distant away.

Gwen looks thoughtful. "We might need him. I mean, I saw the Hunger Games this year. I saw how well he did."

Gale snorts at Gwen's comment. "Apparently," he says angrily. "You didn't see the entire games or you would have saw Catnip keep him alive by risking her life almost the entire time!"

"I did see that," she says matter-of-factly. "But he would have done a lot better if he had not been injured saving Katniss."

I could tell by her statements that she had won. I have to agree with her. We probably do better with Peeta.

"Fine," says Gale defeated. "He can come. But he will go home if he holds us back at all.

"Agreed," say Gwendolyn. I have to applaud her for her shrewdness during the whole conversation, especially when she was in disagreement with Gale. Not everyone can beat Gale. It's good to know that Gwen is smart and will keep us from making stupid mistakes.

We walk back over to where Peeta is standing, Gale shuffling behind us, clearly upset.

"What's the verdict?" Peeta asks. His expression looks somewhat sad, as if he thinks he cannot join us.

"You can come," Gwen says. "But Gale says if you slow us down you have to leave."

"That's okay with me," Peeta says happily. This does nothing for Gale's mood. He becomes more depressed, but I know he'll get over it. I think it is very humorous when Gale is sad. It's like a child's misery.

Our trio becomes a quartet and we all begin to walk. Gale drags his feet, his head down. I smile to myself and slow my pace to meet his. When I am walking next to him, Gale straightens up, pretending nothing's immoral to his principles at the moment.

"What's wrong?" I ask him in good humor.

"Oh just Peeta," He sighs. "Now that he's coming; I have to compete with him for you." He gives me a somewhat mischievous grin and suddenly I'm afraid for Peeta. I stop in my tracks and Gale continues, smiling his head off.

_Oh great, _I think to myself, as I start to walk again, this couldn't possibly turn out good. I knew this was coming, but I did nothing about it. Again it is my fault someone is going to get hurt. Even though now it is unserious, it's not going to end that way. I can feel it.

We continue to walk until sundown. The sun, what I can see of it anyways, is a dazzling yellow-orange. The sky had turned a brilliant red. We stop to rest in a small clearing we had found. It's about twenty feet long and surround by trees. The four of us collapse to the ground exhausted.

Gwen is the first to break the hours of silence. "We can't keep walking like this every day," she pants. Peeta, Gale and I nod, too tired to respond to her with words.

I rest against a random tree. My backpack pokes my back and I bend forward to slide it off my back. I lean back again with the pack on my lap. I open the pouch and aimlessly search through it.

As I run my hand on the contents, I stop on my father's map. I pull out the drawing and unfold it. I stare at the etchings and point to a place on it.

"I think we're here," I say to no one in particular. Gale rises from the ground and squats next to me.

"I think you're right," he says studying the map. "Or you're at least close to where we are." I gaze at Gale for a brief moment before becoming embarrassed and looking away. _You're pathetic Everdeen, _scolds my mind.

Night has come and Peeta starts to build a fire. Gale and I go further into the woods to look for game.

"So," Gale starts but doesn't finish.

"So what?" I ask, raising my eyebrows. I have a bad feeling about what's coming; and I wish he chooses not to say his thoughts.

He's silent for a brief moment and I think for a second that he isn't going to say anything.

Then he blurts out. "Do you love him Catnip?" he asks. I can see the pain in his eyes. _Oh why do I hurt so much?"_ I think to myself agonizingly. Gale is staring at me, waiting for an answer. I feel like he's looking right through me.

"Um… I… I don't know," I wind up lamely. "Whatever you saw in the games, I can't tell what I was doing half of the time; I just wanted to come home." I start to feel tears well up in my eyes and I blink them back furiously. _You will __not__ cry Everdeen, especially not in front of Gale, _I tell myself angrily.

"I'm sorry, Katniss," Gale apologizes quietly. "I didn't know."

"I know you didn't," I say embarrassed. "You had no way of knowing. It's not your fault." _It's my fault, _I think somberly.

No, it's not my fault! It's the Capitol's. Their fault my life is ruined. That is their mistake. And it will be their last if I have it my way.

Gale and I continue our hunt. I shoot down a rabbit, right through the eye. I tie it to my belt.

"Catnip," Gale asks hoarsely, "what were the games like? I mean I saw them, but what was it like to be there?"

I sigh, thinking over this question. I debate on whether to answer it or not. On one hand I really didn't want to talk about, reliving the experiences would be torture. On the other hand this is Gale who I trust more than anyone.

Finally I decide to answer him, "It was terrifying with everyone out to get me, but I think the scariest part was the fact we were killing each other to stay alive. It's the Capitol who was making us…," I search for the right word, "murder." I feel myself start to get angry, forgetting Gale is with me.

"And Rue, she's dead, and Thresh and everyone else. It's not fair. No matter what they did to me in the arena, I wouldn't wish them dead!" My voice is raising and I know I have to be quiet. I'm scaring off game and who knows what else could be listening. Or who, I should say.

I quiet myself down by taking deep breaths. It helps a little. I decide to keep the games in my head for now on. Gale had been staring at me the entire time I was ranting.

"It'll be okay, Catnip," he says hushed. "The matter isn't going to change at all, but you'll learn to live with it." He wraps his arms around me and holds me tight. I find this very comforting. The gesture is friend-like, not romantic at all. I bury my face in his chest, still somewhat embarrassed with my behavior.

"I hope you're right," I say simply. And for my sanity's sake, he needs to be right. The thing about Gale is that he says exactly what he thinks; he doesn't try to make feel better with lies. And no matter how much the truth hurts; he'll tell it to me if I need to hear it.

I realize now how grateful I am for Gale and how much I need him. _Ugh, Katniss, don't go there, _I think disgusted with myself.

Gale and I finish our hunting trip with three rabbits and bag of greens. I think we did pretty well. When we arrive at the clearing Peeta is done with the fire; and he and Gwendolyn are sitting around it, talking quietly. Their eyes light up when they see our haul and I allow myself a small smile.

Gwen rises from the ground and walks over to us. "I'll cook these up," she says. I hand her the rabbits and she goes right to work. I trust her with the cooking because, let's face it, Gale and I are not the best cooks there is and Peeta just, well, bakes bread. So it's best if Gwen does the cooking.

Gwendolyn skins and guts the animals. She fastens the rabbits on a stick; I have to laugh at the picture of this; and she sits down on a fallen log, sticking the meat into the fire. Gwen inhales deeply and twists the stick. After awhile and one time of the rabbit catching on fire, the meat is done.

The four of us gather in a circle next to the fire.

"Now what are we going to do?" Peeta asks as everyone is eating rabbit and greens. I know what he is talking about. What about tomorrow? Are we going to keep walking? More and more this seems like a stupid idea, leaving the district. The Capitol is eventually going to come looking for us. And what happens when they can't find us back in District 12? What are they going to do? What about our families? So many questions flood my head as I debate the entire matter. This was my idea to run away. I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, that no matter how far I run, I can't escape my problems.

Suddenly I don't feel hungry anymore, but I finish my food off anyways. By the time Gale, Peeta, and Gwendolyn are done eating, everyone is yawning and very tired.

"Let's go to sleep," says Gale stretching. "I hope you brought your own sleeping bag." he says severely to Peeta.

"Oh no, did I forget?" Peeta says sarcastically. "I was too busy following you three out of the district."

"Okay, arguing doesn't help anyone!" I say holding up my hands. Oh look, my philosopher side is showing again, but I really don't care. I am, well frankly, peeved at Gale and Peeta for being so immature.

"Look, maybe we could take watch shifts and switch sleeping bags during those times," I don't wait for them to answer. "Great, I'll take first shift."

Gwen obediently climbs into her bag; and Gale and Peeta do too, just with some grumbling. "Good boys," I say. They give me annoyed looks.

"Go to sleep," I say and they reluctantly close their eyes. I grin to myself. _That was kind of fun in that childish kind of way, _I think to myself happily.

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Two hours later, I wake up Gale for the next shift. He gets up and sits by a tree. I feel sorry for him that Peeta had put the fire out a couple hours ago so it didn't attract predators.

I climb into the already warm sleeping bag and snuggle in. My eyelids are heavy and I let go of all thoughts, releasing myself to sleep.

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"_The world has transformed to flame and smoke. Burning branches crack from trees and fall in showers of sparks at my feet. All I can do is follow the others, the rabbits and the deer and I even spot a wild dog pack shooting through the woods. I trust their sense of direction because their instincts are sharper than mine. But they are much faster, flying through the underbrush so gracefully as my boots catch on roots and fallen tree limbs, that there's no way I can keep apace with them."_

_I recognize where I am. I'm in the arena again. I am living the experience of the fire again. No, I want to scream but I can't because of the smoke. Isn't bad enough that I went through this the first time?_

_My boots suddenly seem heavier and the next thing I know I'm lying on my stomach because of a tree root I tripped on. I try to scramble to my feet, but only get as far as my hands and knees. I crawl as fast as I can. It's not fast enough though. Soon the world is shaking and the fire engulfs me._

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"Katniss," I hear Gale shouting my name over some kind of loud roaring noise. He is shaking me hard. I open my eyes. His face shows fear and concern for me.

But I pay little attention to that. I'm am too busy looking behind him at the massive wall of flames that are descending on us.

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**OOH cliffhanger!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note- Sorry if anyone was expecting another chapter, one is on the way though.**

**I'm sorry I'm taking a long time to write. I have been super busy and there has been a lot of stress. School is starting soon, so I will have even less time to write. I will finish the story, though. I have finally planned the ending for this fanfic. I arranged this story to be over in a few chapters, but who knows? No one get mad at me because the ending, even though I like the ending I planned.**

**So thanks to you, who read my story and are still reading it, reviewing. Thanks for sticking with me and continuing to read it no matter how bad it got at times! **

**Okay that's all. Next chapter should be coming soon. (sings "Looking Up" by Paramore) What? It's my victory song. :) I don't own the song. :(**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey I'm back! (For the next couple days) I have been really busy with cross country, but now it's over. BUT basketball starts next week so it will be hard to find more time to write. I will try to get another chapter in soon. So thanks for reading those who still are there. **

I lay there for a second before coming to my senses and bolting up. I tumble out of my sleeping bag. I quickly stand up, grabbing my bag. Peeta and Gwendolyn have already taken off running through the forest and I hastily follow them tripping on my bag once before throwing it over my shoulder and running.

As I run I have a strange sensation of déjà vu. I automatically know why. This is just like my dream. And just like in the arena. Gale and I catch up to Peeta and Gwen swiftly and we keep running as fast as we can, through the woods, dodging underbrush.

The air is soon filled with smoke and we're all coughing. I risk a look behind me. The inferno is following quickly. I face forward again. I yank my shirt over my mouth and nose and advise my friends to do the same. They do.

Suddenly the ground starts to shake. A giant tower of flames shoots out of the ground, narrowly missing Gwen. She screams, jumping back. Before anyone else can react, more of the odd fire configurations are blazing out of the earth.

_This is new, _I think wryly to myself.

The four of us start to panic. We sprint as fast as we can away from the conflagration, barely missing the fires from inside the ground.

For how long we run, I do not know. After awhile the flames slow down and then completely disappear. I don't have any idea where it goes, but it just evaporates. This fact makes me think the Capitol has something to do with this.

We keep running just enough to get away from where the fire was. We find a clearing and catch our breath. I place my hands on my knees, gasping for air. I pull my water bottle from my bag and take a long, deep drink from it. I savor every bit of it.

"How about we rest?" Gale asks his voice hoarse from the ash. Peeta, Gwendolyn, and I all agree. Peeta decides to keep watch, just in case of some dangerous animals or another man-made inferno trying to wipe out our group because of some berries.

I lay down on my back looking up at the moon. It is at its waxing stage. A day or two and it would be full, a moon associated with the mother goddess. I begin to think about my own mother, and about Prim.

_I miss them so much._

I know everyone is sleeping except Peeta and me. I wonder if he misses his family. I don't try to stay awake the entire time of Peeta's watch but I do. After awhile I get tired of laying there so I tell Peeta that he can go to bed. He obediently lies down, and I rest my back against a tree.

I sit there silently. I listen intently to the forest. All the sounds that once were so familiar to me are now foreign. Another thing the games stole from me.

I yawn, stretching my arms outwards. I realize then how tired I am. My eyelids are heavy and I feel them sliding shut. I know I should arouse someone to take the next my place. But I don't want to wake them.

_And besides, _I think, _a couple minutes won't kill anybody, right?_ This isn't the games; nobody is out to get me in the woods. So I give into sleep.

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I feel the sun beating down on me. I stir before reluctantly opening my eyes. The sun is very bright and I have to squint until my eyes adjust. It's daybreak and I'm the only one awake. I breathe in the air, feeling relaxed.

I register a slight pain in my back. My backside feels stiff unlike what any tree has ever done to me. I turn around to see my ache's initiator. The object shines in the light and it takes me a moment to focus in on it.

I emit some sort of mix between a scream and a gasp. I recognize the object, I recognize it too well. The cornucopia! I scramble backwards from it as if this will make it disappear.

But it doesn't. It gleams sitting there with no attention of moving. How did it get here in the middle of the forest?!

I then realize it hadn't moved at all. I am in arena. The lake is to my right and the forest is all around. It is a hundred times worse than it was ever in my dreams.

I crawl over to Peeta, who is still sleeping on the ground with Gale and Gwen. I shake him awake, taking no time to be gentle.

"Peeta," I hiss. I'm hoping if I wake him up this will become a dream, but I know this will not happen. But I have to hope.

Peeta groans and rolls on his back, stretching. "What is it Katniss?"

I don't speak, I just point. He notices my silence and opens his eyes. Then his eyes land on the cornucopia. He freezes and sits up. He carefully pulls me back against him and scoots us away from it, obviously having the same idea I had.

I open my mouth to speak but nothing comes out, so I shut it. Gale and Gwen are starting to wake up and of course they notice the cornucopia. Their eyes widen with shock and they join Peeta and me.

Then a voice booms around the arena, "Welcome, four rebels of Panem, to the 74 ½ Hunger Games."

I recognize the voice. Claudius Templesmith. I hear Gwen cry out, but it is nothing but background noise. I am too busy concentrating on the loud speaker.

"The rules to this Hunger Games are simple, but different. You shall not kill each other. There will be other… creations in the forest to do that for you. All you need to do is survive. But good luck. And may the odds be ever in your favor."

Claudius Templesmith's voice cuts off and there is nothing but silence. We look at each other before I speak up.

"We should probably pack up our stuff," I say. I surprise myself by talking, but when I did my voice had trembled. Who could blame me? This is nothing but a nightmare, but a hundred times worse. I'm kidding myself. This is a trillion times worse.

Everyone including me stands up and pick up our things, quietly. Once everything is taken care of I hear a howl. Like a mutation howl.

"Run!" Gale shouts and the four of us take off running into the woods, the opposite direction of the howl. We run deep into the forest, but the howling keeps getting closer. We whip past bushes and trees and other landmarks I recognize, but I ignore them. I can hear that the mutts are close behind us.

"The trees!" I yell and we quickly climb up climb up three trees, Gwen and me in one, and Peeta and Gale in two separate trees. I am the last one up and soon as I am in the safety of the branches, mutts break through the bushes.

The mutts spot us in the trees and jump at us, trying to reach us. Lucky for us, they weren't built for climbing. At least that was what I thought until they actually started climbing. Their claws suddenly became longer and curved inwards. The mutts dug their nails into the tree and began to rise to the top of the trunk.

I shoot one mutt down with my arrow. It falls limply to the ground. I focus on my prey at the bottom of my tree. It is vaguely recognizable, but I can't place it. But then it hits me like a ton of bricks. I know that mutt. Clove. I could tell by the sandy colored coat and the piercing, but now vacant eyes.

A cannon fires off. I hurriedly look around at my companions, expecting one of them to fall out of a tree dead. But luckily they don't. They are all alive and shooting at the mutts, flinging knives and anything else they can find. It dawns on me that the cannon shot off because I killed Clove.

I also realize that not every tribute is here, only the ones who had a big impact on Peeta and me in the games.

Cannons go off, and I don't notice this but there is only one mutt left. It sees my distraction and leaps at my foot. It digs its teeth deep into my calf. I groan in agony and want nothing more than the pain to go away.

And it does. Gale's arrow pierces its neck and the mutt falls. Out of anger and pain I launch an arrow at the mutt that bit me. It hits the mutt right in the eye. Then a cannon goes off. I know I had killed that mutt. I jump to the ground to examine it. What I see brings tears to my eyes.

Peeta's worried voice comes from right next to me. "Katniss are you okay? How is your leg?"

He bends over to check on it, but I just brush him off.

"My leg's fine," I insist. He gives me a look.

"Then what's wr…" he breaks off when he sees the mutt. Tears stream down my face. Peeta's face suddenly loses any happiness it might have had because of our victory over the mutts.

I cry harder and harder; and Gwen comes over to me and puts her arm around me. But that doesn't help me any. How could it now that I know what I have done?

I have killed Rue.

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**Well that was the chapter, hope you liked it. So that's it. It would be great if you reviewed or at least keep reading it!**

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	11. Chapter 11

**Well here is the _second _to last chapter. There is more to sum everything up and explain and yada yada yada. You get it? Good. So on with the show.**

**Disclaimer: I almost forgot I don't own anything. Do I have to keep saying it?**

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Have you ever felt as though your heart has been ripped open and stomped on the ground, or suffer as if thousands of needles pricked every part of your body going in at least an inch deep? If you haven't, consider yourself lucky. If you have, times that pain by a hundred and you still wouldn't have as much pain as I did when I saw that I had killed Rue. Even mutation form of her death hurt me.

My tears stop flowing. I still ache with sadness. I try and rationalize that I didn't kill Rue, the boy from District 1 did. She was already dead. The mutt wasn't her, it just had her eyes. But every time I thought about that, it sent chills down my spine so I push the disturbing idea far away from me as it would go.

"We should keep moving," I say trying hard to keep my voice from shaking. Gwen nods at me and so we keep walking. I lead since I know this place more than anyone, even more than Peeta because he was lying on a stream bank and probably unconscious too.

No one questions my leadership. But I do. I don't know where to take them. I don't know where I'm going. All I know is… I just want to get away.

We walk and walk. My feet lead me and the others follow. I recognize landmarks but nothing jumps out at me until we reach the cave. The cave where I had kissed Peeta repeatedly. I look back at Gale waiting for his reaction, but his face is stony. I bite my bottom lip and shuffle to the cave, aware of three sets of eyes on me. It makes me uncomfortable but I keep going.

I reach the cave and enter it. It was remarkably unchanged since I was last here. The Capital probably hadn't touched it yet, not for awhile at least. I breathe in deeply and images of a wounded Peeta fill my mind. I relive every emotion, every detail of every little thing I saw in the arena. My body feels like it's on fire, burning with pain and fear.

_Stop it, _I mentally shout at myself. What was wrong with me? I knew I couldn't run my past, even as far away as the woods.

Something begins to be perceived by me. I ran away from District 12 trying to get away from the games, not to protect my family. But no matter where I go the Hunger Games will follow. They are a part of me and, as much as want to, I couldn't get rid of them.

I exit the cave feeling exhausted from everything in the past couple of days. Gwen looks at my sympathetically and Gale's face was solemn. I share a look with Peeta and he looks pained. I know what the Hunger Games did to him. No matter what part of him would be in my future, I know that he _will _be in it no matter what. The Hunger Games will keep us tied together even if it tried to pull us apart. I can't live without Peeta no more than I could live without Gale. I attempt to stop thinking for it is making me hurt worse.

Gwen pipes up first. "Now what?" her normal comforting voice is now hollow and it makes me nervous when I don't recognize it.

Gale shrugs. "We can't get out. We're trapped," he says simply. "I'm sorry you guys, but this is it. We lost."

"We can still survive," Peeta says trying hard to sound optimistic. "I mean, Katniss and I survived here and that was with everyone and everything out to get us."

Of course my pessimistic ways has brings everyone down. "Why bother?" I ask. "Why would anybody want to live in this stupid arena?" All of their eyes train on me, so I look at my feet, shuffling them around in place.

I feel Gale's eyes narrow at me. "You rather give up and die then live here?" his voice is cold. I know he is really asking why I killed tributes in the arena if I didn't want live.

I reluctantly pull my eyes up to his. "Yes," I say quietly. I'm proud and impressed that my voice was strong. I could tell Gale's angry. He stood their fuming, until peace-saving Peeta comes along.

"Don't even start," Peeta warns us, "Katniss, Gale has a point; you don't want to be dead. And Gale, Katniss has been through enough. So just drop it right here!" I glare at Peeta though secretly I am thanking him in my twisted mind.

What is wrong with me? I never ever fought with Gale, especially over something so… so… I can't even think of the word. Pointless? That worked. I am changing or is Gale? What can't I talk to him like before? Why did everything have to be so complicated? Why did the Hunger Games have to be in my life?

I curse at them in my mind, but this does as much as cursing the wind. Which does nothing. Trust me, I've tried.

Then a booming sound echoes around the arena, scaring me. I jump high in the air and so does Gwen.

A voice comes on to a loud speaker. I recognize it as Seneca Crane, the Head Gamemaker. "Greeting rebels of the 74 ½ Hunger Games. You've proved you can survive infernos, mutations, and extraordinary amounts of pain." _You got that right, _I think annoyed. "So we have made a tough decision, but I think you four will be the most joyous with it. You see, people are wondering where you went. And the good inhabitants of the Capital are growing restless without the latest news on the star-crossed lovers. So we're letting you live. Isn't that just peachy?" I raise my eyebrows at his choice of words.

Gwen breaks out in a smile over the news. But Seneca Crane isn't finished yet. "Whoa, hold it right there Gwendolyn." She frowns when she hears her name. "The thing is, we are not going to let you get off that easily. Why would we want you running around with news of what the Capital did to you? And of course there can be no possible future for Katniss and Gale. Oh, you will love what we have in store for you."

That was it. We are left with silence. I exchange a look with Gale. Our bickering is pointless and stupid and immature. The main problem is that I can never have a future with Gale no matter what. Even if I planned never to get married, I still wouldn't even have the option.

No, the main problem at the moment is we have no idea what he is talking about. Then we hear it. Guns go off. The four of us dive to the ground. I end up near Gale and he puts an arm around me as if trying to protect me from the bullets. I hear them whiz past my head, somewhere over top of us. Gwen plugs her ears with her hands.

I don't cover my ears because I hate not being able to hear and by the sound of them I can tell they are not bullets. I glance to where one had nailed itself into a tree. They were…

"Needles!" I gasp to Gale. He looks toward the tree and nods. Gale then starts to rise from the ground. I try to yank him back to the ground when I finally figure out that we weren't being fired at anymore.

I stand up. Peeta and Gwen had already risen, making me feel like a fool.

I see nothing until a man steps out the bushes, holding a gun, but not aimed at us. Similar people step out dressed the same and all carrying a gun. They come around us in a circle surrounding us, guns all pointing at us except for the first man.

He has black hair, and is tall and muscular. He wore an expression of amusement. "Look what we got here," he says with a half smile. His voice wasn't deep like I supposed, but sort of like Gales' and Peeta's.

"A couple of lost travelers?" he jokes, laughing to himself. No one else laughs. "Yes right. We were hired by the Capital to inject you with some sort of Capital-lab medicine that will make you forget everything that happened since you got off that train. It'll add events that didn't happen so you don't remember that you were injected in the first place. It might have some bad side effects such a sore throat and dizziness. But other than that you shall be just fine. Oh and you might be a little forgetful. But why am I telling you this? You won't remember anyways," he gives a sympathetic smile, before continuing. "Right then, go ahead."

He raises his gun to us. Then there is open fire. The first one hits Gwen. She screams before collapsing on the ground. Peeta goes down the same way, his face full of pain.

Then one hits me. I sink to my knees, pleading to myself not to black out. But the pain is excruciating. The last thing I see is horrified expression on Gale's face and then a look of outrage. Then nothing at all.

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**One more chapter. How about we take 20 seconds to review? Come on people would it kill you to review? It would be great!**


	12. Chapter 12

**This chapter unbelievably short and the last one. At first I was planning for the chapter before this to be the last one, but I feel like I have an obligation to you readers. So this wraps it up. No one get mad at the ending. I know it's kind of like "come on!" Now before I spoil it, read on!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games or the character or the original plot, but I do own the idea of this story! I think. If I don't, just play along **

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I open my eyes. Everything around me if foggy and it takes a minute before I can see clearly. I blink a couple of times, adjusting my eyes to the lighting. The sun shines through the window.

_Where am I? _I think to myself groggily. I recognize the patchwork quilt, the green walls, and the dark woodwork. I am in my room in Victor's Village. There is nothing wrong with that.

I cough and become aware of that my throat is burning. I cough again and try to get to my feet only to be hit by a wave of dizziness. I stumble back on to my bed feeling terrible.

I place a hand against my face trying to feel if I have a fever, and I think I do. I push my hair out of my eyes and curiously found that it's wet with perspiration. I must have had a nightmare. I try to think of what it was about but come up empty. Maybe something else will give me a hint

I think back to the days before since I got off the train. It gives me a headache but I persist. I can't think of what happened the past few days, except I was at home. There are no details about any of it.

I'm confused and aggravated. Why can't I remember? I let out an annoyed groan. This is frustrating! It wasn't that long ago, just a few days. Another question strikes me, more disturbing then the last.

Why can I remember every day before that? The question prods my mind over and over. I reason that I must have not been feeling the best. Maybe I was really tired or something. So I was sleeping almost all day. Yeah, that had to be it.

And with that I close my eyes and sink back down into oblivion of the unknown, never remembering what had really happened those few days when the Capital had my friends and I tortured in the arena. Never knowing that was only the first step in their plan to destroy me.

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**Well, kind of in conclusion, all the avox get their tongues cut out. I know, that's great (sarcasim). No one remembers anything. Great again (sarcasim intended).**

**Well thank you all for reading. You are all the most amazing people in the world, who probably have better things to do than read my story.**

**And now from a dillusional, nutty 13-year old girl, I bid you a good night and (It's Saturday Night Live!) (yeah I wish)**

**May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor! **


	13. Important

**Okay let me say this to the readers of _The Rebellion. _I know you all probably hate me. Okay I'll live. But let me say that this took place between _The Hunger Games _and _Catching Fire. _So it might be kind of strange if Katniss remembered all of this but never mentioned in the books because I don't know maybe she didn't think it was important.**

**The story may have had a different ending if I had finished before _Catching Fire_ came out. But I didn't so that's that. You will have to get over the ending. And please just because you didn't like the ending of this story, doesn't mean you can't read my other stories I plan to write. I promise I'll try not to give it a bad ending. Except maybe I'll write one from Rue's point of view, but when she dies, she dies. But the rest should have good endings.**

**Please don't hate me. I'm a semi-good person.**


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